Of course my dog wears a sweater. Of course she sits for her picture. Like I said, she’s awesome.

We got Priscilla from a breeder when she was two months old. She’s six years old now. She also has a diva complex that we created.

For awhile, we have tossed around the idea of getting a second pug as a companion for her. We recently decided to fill out an application with Mid-Atltantic Pug Rescue. We knew we didn’t want a puppy, and we were perfectly happy to take in a pug who needed a home.

I explained on the application that we wanted another female who was 1-3 years younger than Priscilla. The person who got in touch with me said she had a great recommendation for us. His name was Max, and he was nine years old.

Ok – doesn’t that just sound like the complete opposite of what I said we wanted?

Of course, personality of the pug matters not just age and gender. We needed a dog who was not an alpha. Priscilla is not an alpha dog, but I don’t want another dog to come into her home and start bossing her around. We needed a dog who would not be agressive when it came to toys or food. Basically, I just wanted a happy-go-lucky pug who enjoyed hanging out and getting belly rubs.

So while we had agreed to meet Max, I was a bit wary. He was not what I asked for at all. But then, I remembered what I learned in yoga: don’t have preconceptions.

For example, Day 21 kinda sucked. It was definitely hard. It’s also over. Having thoughts about how Day 22 might go wouldn’t help (oh don’t worry. I’ll cover Day 22 in a moment). Having thoughts about what kind of dog Max might be, and if I would be happy to have him, would not help prior to meeting him. On the surface, Bikram yoga sounds hard, and it is. On the surface, Max sounds like a real sweetie-pie so maybe I should just stick to what I know for the moment and assume (if I assume at all) that’s what he is.

Well, guess what? Max is a total sweetie:

You see the little couch behind him? That’s a special piece of furniture for little dogs. Yes, Priscilla has her own piece of furniture. Yes, she uses it.

Anyways, Max was totally easy. Him and Priscilla got along fine. The cat didn’t really care about him (and he doesn’t care about her). Priscilla didn’t have any problem with him being in the house. She seemed to be so happy, and so did he. Max loves walks. This is good as the first thing on the agenda is to get him to lose five pounds.

We’re going to move forward with adopting Max and see how it goes. I am glad I didn’t let the fact that just because Max didn’t fit my image of what adoping a pug should be like get in the way. I have my yoga to thank for that.

Ok. The yoga. Let me tell you about Day 22. It sucked.

I have hit a rough patch which the instructor assured me happens in challenges. I was also assured that I would pull through, come out the other side, and have some amazing classes. But these last two or three classes have just been awful. Usually when I hit the floor I regain strength and energy. But now? I cannot make it through the floor series. Today I congratulated myself for doing a sit up and hanging out on my mat while everyone else did the posture. I did thi numerous times. I was basically done when we hit the floor. Oh I managed to do a decent wind removing pose. I made it through most of the spine strengthening series. Then I crashed. The rest of the class was me telling myself not to think about how much I wanted to throw up or else I would. Just breathe. Stare at a ceiling tile. Any tile will do. As soon as class was over I fled the room. I may have set a world record!

But tomorrow is another day. Day 23. Who knows what it will bring?

Rate this:

Share this:

Like this:

Related

First thing – Pris & Max are both exceptionally adorable. I wish you much luck in locating Max’s waistline (poor pugs). (Also, thanks to your rescue recommendation I just donated to help Parker, the 12 year old diabetic, so YAY!)

As for Day 22 – good for you for sticking it out (not that we give ourselves much choice, right?). It’s tough stuff and I totally understand that there are those days where the only thing we can do is stare at the ceiling tiles and will ourselves to stay put. So proud of you!

Thanks so much for your donation to help Parker. That was so kind of you, and just more proof that Bikram yogis are the best! Max is gonna be taking a lot of walks and working off those pounds! That guy clearly does not miss a meal. Thanks for all your support. It means a lot and really does make my day.